The Content Council this week released the results of an exclusive survey, conducted in conjunction with Advertising Age, which examines the state of the content marketing industry’s past, present and future. Despite challenges that content marketers face in the still-evolving practice, survey respondents—whose companies have been involved in content marketing for an average of more than a decade—paint a positive, promising picture for the future of the marketing discipline. “Content is the secret sauce to attract customers and build loyalty today,” said Andy Seibert, managing partner at Imprint and chairman of The Content Council. “Content is the way brands have conversations, and increasingly people are investing in that story.”

According to new findings in an online study conducted by Ipsos on behalf of TRUSTe, 68% of U.S. smartphone users are concerned about having their activity tracked to serve them targeted ads—suggesting that most smartphone users are uncomfortable with the idea of online behavioral advertising (OBA). The study found that lack of consumer trust is currently affecting how consumers are using the Internet. However, research also showed that awareness of the Digital Advertising Alliance's AdChoices icon, which provides users with more control over their online ad experience, jumped to 37%—a significant increase from 21% the previous year.

A new study, The Pursuit of Standard Operating Innovation, examines how marketing innovation drives real value for companies by impacting every part of the enterprise. The study, conducted by experience design agency Sparks Grove, along with its research partner Econsultancy, reveals how to foster innovation in a repeatable, measurable way. According to the study, innovation inevitably comes with hard work and the drive to create a process for creating and testing new ideas. The components required to create "Standard Operating Innovation" within a complex organization include: having a designated budget; balancing breakthrough and incremental innovation; encouraging innovation think time; and measuring speed, quality and quantity.

The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) recently released its annual sales analysis for the promotional products industry, showing total distributor sales topped $21.5 billion for 2014, increasing revenues by 5.1% over 2013 and setting a new record for the second straight year. Fueled by sales of branded items like T-shirts, caps and pens that companies typically give away to promote their business, brand or event, the promotional products industry is growing at over twice the rate of the U.S. economy. "Everyone in our industry should be proud that demand for low-cost, high-ROI ad specialties is once again at a record high," said ASI CEO Timothy M. Andrews.

Enterprise mobile engagement OpenMarketrecently released key findings from a commissioned study conducted by the International Data Corporation(IDC, titled Enterprises Adopting Mobile Messaging to Enhance Communications and Improve Business Operations, which examines how global enterprises are leveraging mobile messaging technology for employee and customer communication use cases across key business functions such as customer service, IT and security, human resources, operations and logistics, and sales and marketing. The findings revealed a disjointed strategy that is especially problematic for today's enterprises, as 75% demand payback on these initiatives in less than a year.

Attention science journalists and editors: You’re being called out by your sources. Nearly 80 percent of American scientists say the superficial nature of media coverage on scientific studies is a major problem for the scientific community’s communications efforts, according to the Pew Research Center’s latest study. The scientific community’s biggest beef with media coverage is that “news reports don’t distinguish between well-founded and not well-founded scientific findings.” A further 52 percent of the community said that the “simplification” of scientific findings is another major problem in terms of communicating those findings to the public. Meanwhile, only 43 percent said it’s important for scientists to get coverage in the news media.

The year ahead is looking good for the travel industry, according to the latest travelhorizons survey released by marketing services firmMMGY Global. The January 2015 survey, of 2,300 U.S. adults, reports that 68 percent plan to take at least one leisure trip during the next six months, a significant increase over the level recorded in 2014, when 64 percent reported such intentions. Reflecting the increase in travel intentions, the Traveler Sentiment Index—which measures U.S. adults’ interest in travel, time for travel, personal finances available for travel, affordability of travel, quality of service, and safety of travel—has ascended to the highest level recorded since the survey’s inception, the first quarter of 2007.

Online shoppers famously have instant access to price comparisons at the very moment of making a purchase—but now brick-and-mortar shoppers are bringing this behavior in-store, according to a new study.Market research firmGfK asked mobile phone users what activities they regularly do on their phones while they are inside a store. The leading behaviors are comparing prices and contacting a friend or family member for advice (at 40 percent each), followed by taking pictures of products that they might buy (at 36 percent). “Having a close eye on the pricing of online competitors and reacting quickly are now key success factors for retailers,” said GfK’s Adrian Hobbs.

A new study released this week by shopping profiler MyBuys finds that 48 percent of consumers recognize that they purchase more from retailers that leverage shopper interests and buying behavior to personalize the customer experience across all channels. In the seventh annual Personalization Consumer Survey, conducted by the e-tailing group, 53 percent of consumers said it’s also important that retailers recognize them as the same person across all channels and devices they use to shop. “By incorporating more tailored content and offers into their marketing strategies, retailers can improve brand loyalty, boost conversion and increase sales,” said Rita Brogley, president and CEO of MyBuys.

Using a geolocation-enabled tracking technique, Canada-based monitoring firm MediaMiser managed to isolate tweets that were sent during the Academy Awards last weekend—and some very interesting buzz resulted. As for the Oscar nominees, the “Best Actress” nominee with the most Twitter mentions along the ropes was Julianne Moore, while Eddie Redmayne generated the most “Best Actor” buzz on the fast-moving social platform—and lo and behold, these actors went on to win their respective categories. Oh, the Twitter-savvy are such visionaries! Meanwhile, a whopping 61% of tweets were sent from Instagram, with another 28% sent from iOS devices (only 8% came from Android devices).

To unlock the great potential of Big Data—such as social media, sensor and transactional data—for the public good, several important issues have to be resolved regarding quality, science and ethics, according to a newly published research report. One common misconception is the belief that sheer volume of data can compensate for any other deficiency in the data. The American Association for Public Opinion Research’s (AAPOR) new report explores what constitutes Big Data, current uses, how it is changing survey research and other ‘classical’ research methods, offers recommendations on creating a framework of best practices and ethics—and warns of the dangers of not using it properly.

Dimension Data this week announced the results of its 2015 Global Contact Center Benchmarking Report, which shows that despite the continued explosive growth of digital contact—in the form of email, Web chat, social media and self-service channels—as a popular customer engagement method, most companies are still unable to keep pace with this digital demand. Furthermore, with a wealth of knowledge available within their contact centers from customer interactions and customer preference data, the jury's still out on what organizations are doing to exploit this information—despite the surge of Big Data, more than a third (40 percent) of contact centers have no data analysis tools.

The practice of e-commerce is still fighting through some awkward growing pains, as 2014’s holiday shopping season displayed—abandoned shopping carts could be spotted throughout cyberspace as a result of uncooperative or otherwise buggy web-checkout pages. But those savvy companies who took the necessary precautions to ensure the optimal operability of their sites fared much better, according to new research by AppDynamics—and it’s time for all online retailers to learn that valuable lesson. A new study, Holiday Web and Mobile Site Performance Review, confirms that retailers with website performance plans and tools in place saw significantly better results than those that did not.

A new study has found that more marketers are turning to display ads to tackle multiple objectives, including the building of greater brand awareness—and to reach these objectives, more attention to messaging and creative execution must be a larger part of campaign equations. And now, with display ads in a seemingly constant state of overhaul, savvy marketers are looking at programmatic creative to overcome challenges at every step, from ad-building to optimization. According to display ad platform Celtra, marketers want to see several prevalent issues solved in order to commit even more of their budgets to creative—and at the top of the list is better user experience.

Seven years after the Great Recession of 2008 created a buyers' market in talent, the pendulum is now swinging the other way. Newly released results from jobs and career marketplace Glassdoor’s Recruiting Outlook Survey reveals talent shortage is the No. 1 hiring challenge today. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, eight million Americans are looking for jobs, but Glassdoor data reveals nearly half (48 percent) of hiring decision makers say they don't see enough qualified candidates for open positions—and a quarter (26 percent) see the situation getting harder in the next 12 months as the U.S. economy picks up.

Digital sites continue to be the primary source of news for young adults, but users of online-only news sites don’t feel as informed as those using sites affiliated with traditional media, according to a survey of readers and followers of Elite Daily, a major destination site for Millennials, and analyzed by the Millennial Research Core (MRC), the research arm of The Agency. More than half of young adults who prefer traditional news sites said they were “very informed,” a rating chosen by only four out of every 10 who prefer online-only news sites. Yet online-only news is the primary source of news for nearly 35 percent, compared to 22 percent for traditional news sites.

New research from PayPal and Ipsos shows that mobile commerce is growing at nearly three times the rate of overall ecommerce. From 2013-2016, the multi-country average compound annual growth rate for mobile commerce is projected at 42 percent—more than three times the rate of growth for overall ecommerce (including mobile commerce). Although the movement is not without its barriers—chiefly, a phone’s small size makes it harder to shop with—the sheer convenience of mobile shopping is driving the trend’s momentum aggressively. “We are on the cusp of the mobile-first era,” said Anuj Nayar, senior director of global initiatives for PayPal.

A new research study by Portia Consultingand the University of California, Los Angeles sheds light on the surprising attitudes, preferences and behaviors of Millennials about cars and mobility. The newly released Millennials and Cars Study is the first research project aimed at better defining the various psychographic segments in the Millennial generation. One of the study’s key findings is that prevailing logic about young people and their aversion to cars is largely false. Nearly half of Millennials love cars and want to own them. “We found [Millennials] to be a multi-faceted generation that can’t be reduced to a selfie-taking stereotype,” said Jake Nakagawa, managing director of Portia Consulting.

For over a decade, marketers have attempted to find the most efficient balance between TV and digital video spend. The CMO Club, an engaged and inspired community of senior marketing executives, recently announced the release of its latest solution guide, The CMO Solution Guide to the Future of TV and Digital Video, which reveals how marketers can align these two critical channels and pulls valuable insights gleaned from a survey of over 80 senior marketers. Based on CMO-centered research, the guide seeks to decode the TV vs. digital video conundrum for marketing leaders who are struggling to close the growing gap between consumer consumption patterns and CMO know-how.

Digital strategy is a growing priority in nonprofits, but, according to new research, this growth is not consistent across organizations in terms of staffing, tools and strategies. Care2, hjc, and NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network recently announced the release of a new study, 2015 Digital Outlook Report, which compiles responses from nearly 500 professionals that work in the nonprofit sector about their digital strategy outlook for 2015. "It's all about people in any industry. Whether we're talking about Oracle, IBM or a charitable organization, how you deploy your human resources is the key to success,” said Mike Johnston, president and founder of hjc.

Food-industry marketing and PR have shifted dramatically over the last few years as healthy eating and organic food have become en vogue—and many food companies have capitalized on that movement by doing overhauls on their own processes and ingredients. Candy maker Nestlé USA is attempting a similar move by announcing last week that it will be removing artificial flavors and FDA-certified colors, like Red 40 and Yellow 5, from all of its chocolate candy products. By the end of 2015, more than 250 products and 10 brands, including Butterfinger, Nestlé Crunch and Baby Ruth candy bars, will be free of artificial flavors and dyes.

The Progressive Policy Institute(PPI) recently released the results of a new study that found most Americans are unfamiliar with the term "net neutrality," want greater disclosure of the details of the FCC's proposal to regulate the Internet, and think that the government regulating the Internet like a public utility will not be helpful. "The public neither understands nor supports the FCC voting on net neutrality rules without greater disclosure of the exact wording and the details of the proposal," said Peter Hart, founder of Hart Research Associates. "That's why Congress should take a closer look at what the FCC is up to and make sure these issues get a thorough public airing."

Web analytics software firm gShift has announced the results of a survey of more than 700 digital marketers, which found even though a majority of respondents plan to increase their search marketing spend across desktops and mobile in 2015, digital teams still struggle with measuring performance and results. Only 10 percent of respondents cited they are able to measure their digital marketing efforts and investments through the entire sales funnel. Also, 50 percent of digital marketers are measuring digital marketing campaign results by tracking leads and conversions, 35 percent are measuring traffic and clicks and roughly five percent of digital marketers are not measuring results at all.

Marketing for Big Pharma has never been easy—controversy has surrounded the drug industry for decades, including allegations of putting profiteering above wellness, and other claims that have created an aura of distrust among consumers. The industry certainly didn't get any help in Harris Poll’s latest Reputation Quotient study, where Big Pharma ranked ninth out of 14 industries, faring little better than other much-maligned categories such as airlines and insurance companies. Let's face it, names such as Merck and Pfizer spur more skepticism than traditional drug brands like Bayer and Excedrin ever did in the old days. There are many reasons why that perception has changed, but the common denominator amid the contention appears to be a lack of trust.

Last summer, PR giant Edelman became the focus of negative media attention when it became known that the agency was open to representing so-called "climate deniers." A perception of environmental callousness was furthered when an internal email from Edelman somehow reached theClimate Investigations Center, in which the firm's then-CEO and U.S. president Mark Hass said it was not necessary that he comment on the agency's stance on which clients it will or won't take—and a media maelstrom began. Like most crises, this one passed over—but it was not easily forgotten by the agency. And now, Edelman has made it official—the firm has announced that it is ending its relationship with the American Petroleum Institute, the powerful Big Oil lobby that has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for the agency. Even at the expense of a big-money client, a legendary PR firm is practicing the PR it preaches.

According to a new study from Act-On Softwareand Gleanster Research, marketers overwhelmingly feel that the world is shifting to a customer-centric focus—but in most companies, no department is accountable for the entire customer relationship, even though 62 percent of respondents felt that marketers are best positioned to orchestrate the overall experience. "Too many B2B organizations treat the customer lifecycle as a series of handoffs between departments—marketing to sales to service," said Ian Michiels, principal at Gleanster. "Marketing is the only function positioned to engage customers across the entire spectrum of customer relationship management, and it's no surprise that the most successful firms take this approach."

Market research and consulting firm Temkin Group has released a new research report, Employee Engagement Benchmark Study, 2015, which analyzes the level of engagement that more than 5,000 full-time U.S. employees have with their employers, and compares these results to similar Temkin Group studies from the previous three years. The study shows that 77% of employees in companies that have significantly better financial performance than their peers are highly or moderately engaged, compared with only 49% of employees in companies with lagging financial performance. "Engaged employees provide an enormous competitive advantage," said Bruce Temkin, customer experience transformist and managing partner of Temkin Group.

As more consumers take to smartphones and tablets to shop with their favorite retail brands, retailers agree that keeping mobile at the top of their marketing priority lists is a smart move. According to Shop.org and Forrester Research’s 2015 State of Retailing Online, mobile remains the top priority for retailers in 2015, with 58 percent of surveyed retailers placing it at the top of their list, up from 53 percent last year. However, many of those who list mobile as the top priority have stated their digital marketing budgets remain modest, knowing consumers are coming to their mobile sites whether they are ready for them or not.

InfoTrends announced the launch of a new advisory service, Customer Engagement Technologies, which provides technology and best practices for enterprises to execute engagement strategies efficiently and effectively to increase the value of customers for the enterprise. The service helps technology providers, service providers and other key stakeholders to keep track of these market developments and to understand the impact this will have on their business. “Digital transformation empowers customers and is fundamentally changing the way businesses engage with their customers,” said InfoTrends’ Kaspar Roos. “We will provide critical insights to technology vendors, service providers and enterprise communication professionals to plan, market or implement customer interaction.”

A new study from NewsCredreveals that educational, truthful and personalized content has a strong influence on U.S. Millennials’ brand loyalty and purchase behaviors. The results show that nearly two thirds (62%) of those surveyed feel that online content drives their loyalty to a brand—yet the content they’re receiving is turning them off by not helping them navigate their everyday problems, being too long, sales-driven, and not tailoring messaging to individual cultural interests. However, only 12% of respondents declared their active dislike for marketing communications—showing that personalized, funny, intelligent and helpful content marketing has an open door to drive Millennials’ loyalty and purchase decisions.

According to the results of a new Sales and Marketing Sentiment Survey from cloud-based sales, marketing, learning and customer experience solutions firm Callidus Software, there is still significant misalignment between sales and marketing teams. Among the key findings is that the majority (84 percent) of sales and marketing teams are misaligned. "It's clear that sales and marketing departments need to be working in tandem, yet the processes are still fractured," said Leslie Stretch, president and chief executive officer at CallidusCloud. "As this survey shows, sharing data and content between teams is key to bringing the two departments together, increasing communication and efficiencies."

Merkle, a technology-enabled, data-driven customer relationship marketing (CRM) firm, has released the findings from its Retail Consumer Sentiment Survey, during the 2014 holiday shopping season. The results conclude that consumer expectations and behaviors signal the potential for retailers in 2015 to create the next generation of personalized digital interactions. “We have reached the point where delivering personalization does not just refer to content, but will also need to reflect time and location,” said Paul Schottmiller, senior vice president, strategy, retail and consumer goods. “Consumers’ expectations are high and retailers have never had more options for using technology to deliver differentiated customer experiences.”

A new study from Brand Keys measures a brand’s ability to meet customers’ expectations better than the competition when compared to consumers’ perception of the category “ideal.” According to the firm’s 2015 Customer Loyalty Engagement Index (CLEI), WhatsApp, Facebook, Pandora, Netflix and Google earned engagement leadership positions in the most competitive categories. “In a marketplace where brands struggle to create meaningful differentiation and engagement, those better able to identify customers’ expectations and address them via authentic emotional values see tangible bottom-line results,” said Robert Passikoff, president of Brand Keys.

More than 93 million selfies are taken worldwide each day, and in the last year alone, the term "selfie" was mentioned over 154 million times across social media channels (according to Google and Sysomos, respectively). Love them or loathe them, selfies are everywhere—and Coyne PR’s recently released State of the Selfie report takes a headlong dive into selfie culture with the goal of helping marketers and communicators harness the cultural phenomenon for their brand or company. "It's vital that we dissect and understand their role in popular culture and apply that knowledge to building effective brand communication strategies," said Marie Baker, vice president of social media at Coyne.

A new report recently released by Euromonitor International, titled Seven Consumer Types for Successful Targeted Marketing, outlines marketing strategies for reaching seven identified types of consumers. The consumer types are based on data gathered in Euromonitor’s 2013 Global Consumer Trends survey, which captured the personality traits, preferences and buying behaviors of more than 16,000 online consumers globally. Each consumer type has distinct preferences and habits separating them from their counterparts, even among those in a similar demographic group. “Consumer segmentation beyond demographics, and these seven global consumer types in particular, provide a strong starting point for businesses crafting marketing campaigns and strategic messaging,” said survey analyst Lisa Holmes.

Recruitment technology company Jibe, Inc.has announced the launch of The Data Driven Recruiter, an online educational resource and content hub focused around the emergence of data and analytics across the global recruitment industry. The Data Driven Recruiter will share real-world stories from some of the talent acquisition market’s leading professionals and thought leaders about how they are using data and analytics to source talent and hire more strategically and effectively than ever before. With 90 percent of the world’s data generated within the past three years alone, just about every business discipline has been impacted and in many cases radically transformed. Talent acquisition is no different but is only now beginning to feel the impact from data.

In a review of trends impacting the nation’s biggest eaters—Boomers and Millennials—a new study from Maxwell PR + Engagement found a parallel path of interests among the two generations, which make up more than half the country’s population and purchasing power. “When you compare trends it’s easy to see that boomers, a generation of people determined not to age, are watching and adopting Millennial behavior in part to stay young in both spirit and body,” said Jen Maxwell-Muir, founder of Maxwell and self-disclosed Gen X-er. “Memorable experiences are central to both, but for Millennials food is rooted in self-expression, while Boomers are motivated more by staying relevant.”

Advertising agencies entered 2015 with optimism, expanded client budgets and big plans for growth, according to a new agency survey conducted by STRATA, a media buying and selling software firm. The fourth-quarter agency survey found more than half (53%) of agencies report they see their businesses growing in 2015 compared to a year ago. Forty-five percent of agencies say they plan on hiring more staff—the highest percentage ever recorded in the history of the firm’s agency survey. This optimism is not unfounded as 35% of the agencies polled say their clients are increasing their budgets from last year, representing a 50% increase from just two years ago.

Selfie stick. #YOLO. “Keeping it real.” That’s how this president rolls. Since his election in 2008, President Obama has changed the game with a fresh approach when it comes to selling his agenda. From his “Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis” appearance last year to delivering “The Word” on “The Colbert Report,” to his multiple visits to “The Daily Show,” the president and his team have shaken up the ways the presidential message is delivered—and it’s paying off. It’s one hell of a diverse content marketing strategy, and it’s a lesson in how brands win—by using intuitive ways to reach consumers.

We have all our favorite brands for at least some of the things we purchase for daily consumption, including both food and other household items. Whether we're considering breakfast foods, soft drinks, pet food, or even paper products, Americans often have their preferences. But just how often do Americans reach for "name brand" products over the store brand options available? That depends on exactly what they're reaching for, a new Harris Poll finds. Not too surprisingly, in many instances, income differences coincide with brand choice differences, but differences also exist among generations. Men and women have a few different preferences as well.

Pragmatic Marketing has released the results of its 15th annual Product Management and Marketing Survey, a comprehensive survey that explores the types of challenges product teams face around the globe. Among the findings: Product managers and marketers earned an average of $100,000 to $120,000 a year before bonuses in 2014, while the average annual bonus was just over $10,000. Among other key findings, survey respondents with at least seven direct reports averaged $28,000 more than their counterparts, while those with no direct reports earned $9,000 less. In addition, respondents with 11 or more years' experience in the industry earned $17,000 more on average.

How and where Americans shop for food is changing dramatically, according to a new study, Food Shopping in America 2014. The study unveils the evolving shopping landscape of not only where people shop, but who is doing the shopping. Increasingly, men (who now compose 43 percent of primary shoppers) are shopping frequently and they now make just as many monthly store visits as women. The study—which was jointly developed, conducted and interpreted by consumer research firm The Hartman Group and food and nutrition marketing agency MSLGROUP—seeks to explain how consumers plan, decide and shop in the era of unlimited choices and blurring channels.

Now that Brian Williams has been suspended for six months, it looks like the heat has died down for NBC News—the network acted decisively and punitively, Lester Holt is a more than capable fill-in anchor, and the newscast rolls on. But the future remains hazy for NBC, which clearly has left the door open for a variety of outcomes. "[Williams] deserves a second chance and we are rooting for him," said NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke this week. "Brian has shared his deep remorse with me and he is committed to winning back everyone's trust." But is that really possible? Meanwhile, ABC News is looking to capitalize on its opportunity to make gains on its top-rated rival.

With cost-conscious consumers looking to stay within a budget this Valentine’s Day, a new survey from Daymon Worldwide reveals that 72 percent of respondents will buy a Valentine’s Day gift from a store where they also purchase groceries. Fueled by the savings on these items, consumers also plan to splurge on experiences, like going out for a romantic dinner. “Twenty percent of respondents indicated they will be purchasing more private brand Valentine’s Day items where they buy their groceries than they have in the past,” said Janet Oak, Daymon head of global advisory and custom shopper insights. “Retailers can leverage their private brands as a means to differentiate from competitors and inspire core consumers.”

MarketYourFund.com has just completed a comprehensive meta-analysis on the statistical benefits of financial PR for private equity and hedge funds. Its white paper, A Statistical Look at the Benefits of Financial PR for Private Equity and Hedge Funds, culled through university studies, independent market research and public opinion surveys to measure how financial PR influences investor decision-making and the value of portfolios. Even though the concept of hedge fund publicitystirs feelings of uncertainty with traditional hedge fund managers, the idea of appearing on business news networks or inside financial newspapers is gaining ground as an industry practice with major financial firms spearheading the movement.

While the Digital Age has encouraged more consumers to shop and browse products on the web, physical stores are still primary destinations for shoppers, according to PwC's annual consumer survey, Total Retail: Retailers and the Age of Disruption. Based on a survey of more than 19,000 respondents globally, the report reveals that the physical store remains the retail touch point with the highest frequency, driving retailers to transform in-store experiences with differentiated storefronts that turn stores into ultimate shopping destinations. “This year's survey results reveal that the online shop has become a showroom where shoppers research and compare prices for later, in-store purchases," said PwC’s Steven Barr.

The International Advertising Bureauand C3Research this week released “Rising Stars Ads and Brand Equity,” a new research study that demonstrates that Display Rising Stars ads—next-generation, rich media canvasses for ad creative—are more effective in brand building than legacy ad formats. The data clearly shows that Display Rising Stars deliver 30 percent stronger brand lift than UAP formats with just one full exposure, rising to 42 percent when consumers interact with a Rising Stars ad. Rising Stars also beat traditional display ads when it comes to ad recall, with consumers remembering half of the Rising Stars viewed—triple the recall of the legacy digital display ads presented.